Dance in the Moonlight
by JoshuaNebb
Summary: After being off training for so many years with Pervy Sage/Jeraiya Naruto has come back a changed man. Everyone is happy to see him again. Especually Hinata. A good old fashion love story in a new light. NaruHina.
1. Chapter 1

I'm a huge NaruHina fan , well more a Hinata fan, and have read a great deal of fanfics. Still I think the stories out there don't really address Hinata and Naruto's feelings toward each other bringing them only closer together. Plus, I would like to keep going into greater depth of their emotions as well as the feeling of the people around them besides loves certainly complex. Try and bear with me, considering I don't really know what it's like. Just my ideal version anyway. Love to hear what you think, Thanks a lot.

Feel free to comment, I only hope to get better. Plus, if you post any suggestions they might find their way into the story if they fit in. Enjoy…

Disclaimer- No, I don't own Naruto, Yet (Haaahahahahahahaha). Besides that would be totally awesome if I did.

Please note, story begins between the original series and after Naruto finishes his training with Jiraiya.

**Chapter 1-Rememberance/the sign**

Two figures walked in the distance talking to each other. One of them was a teenage boy, about seventeen , with a bright black and orange heavy jacket and brilliantly bright blonde hair. He had three scars running sideways across his cheeks which he contorted angrily. He yelled something and jumped in front of the old guy with sticky white hair. The older man's red and white robes flapped around a scroll on his back as the kid yelled impatiently at him, something about not being there already.

The older man sighed and walked right past him, but the teen didn't simply stop yelling. Instead his face contorted angrily again, as he ran to catch up. He shot his mouth off again, but truth was he didn't have the energy or the will now a days to keep his temper up. Slowly he stopped screaming and started grumbling to himself. Slowly he stopped grumbling and turned back to his own thoughts shaking his head.

_That pervy sage better keep going past this next town or I'm gonna die. Why has he got to take so long. I mean come on it's not like he's getting any younger, actually, neither am I. What am I gonna do about him. That big Pervert. _Naruto sighed softly to himself shaking his head. _Well, I guess it could be worse. Honestly it could be a lot worse. _He thought back to Jiraiya stopping at every hot spring trying to take a peak in the women's area. _He certainly has gotten better. I mean he still may be the biggest pervert in the entire world, but still he has been a somewhat decent teacher, sometimes. _

A happy cackle tore Naruto back to the real world. Jiraiya was standing with his telescope up to his eye a huge smile creeping up his face, walking forward Naruto couldn't see a thing, until Jiraiya walked off the road and to a bush. He pushed some of the branches away and by doing so made a lot of notice.

Naruto spoke in a sparing tone toward Jiraiya, almost as if he were a young child to be told off, "Pervy Sage, what the heck are you doing…."

Jiraiya stopped him mid sentence with a wave of his hand. Naruto knew better than to interrupt him now. Nothing he could say would do a thing whatsoever. Naruto shook his head again and walked a couple feet away from Jiraiya. He sat down next to an old Jierus tree. Naruto hated to admit it, but It felt good to relax his aching legs. Ever since they left the village hidden in the leaves five years ago, he'd been training so hard that he hardly remembered anything before the trip. His eyelids slowly crawled over his eyes and before he even realized it, he was out like a rock.

For a while he rested in a dreamless sleep, content. But, slowly his dream changed. He was back in the village hidden in the leaves. Everything was just the way it was when he left. Everyone was in Grandma Tsunade's office waiting to hear about their next mission. No one paid attention to Naruto as he walked up to the front of the fifth hokage's desk. Everyone was silent, so silent in fact it seemed like a needle could drop and break the silence. Just as sudden everyone was talking and clapping Naruto on the back, as if he had just done the best thing they had ever seen. Confusion filled Naruto as even the Hokage smiled at him. He looked around and saw even Sasuke was in the room praising him. It made him feel happy, really happy inside. Like he was finally accepted.

Then the dream changed and he was watching Sasuke walk away from Sakura for the last time. Sakura's bright red clothes seemed in an extreme contrast to Sasuke's dead black as he walked by the bench on the only way out of the village, Sakura had tears running down her face as she seemed to scream at Sasuke, but nothing could be heard. Suddenly. Sasuke was behind Sakura and whispering into her ear; "Thank you". Naruto tried to move, anything to help Sakura, he had to keep his promise, he had to bring Sasuke back, but he couldn't move even an inch. Sakura fell striking the ground the darkness gathering around her canvassing the entire area.

Slowly the darkness started to fade away and Naruto blinked at the sun's sudden brightness and heat. He couldn't help but sit up, hitting his head on the tree cutting his comment short.

"Hey…OWW."

He looked around and saw Pervy Sage sitting in the same spot he had when the sun was still high in the sky, grinning like a fox. But now the sun rested near the horizon, threatening to fall. Naruto managed to stand up shaking some of the exhaustion from his body. He still felt as though he hadn't slept in a month, ever since these dreams had started coming back. He rolled his neck in another attempt to loosen some of the tension, but that didn't work either. He slowly stood up with a hand on his head. His whole body felt burnt from laying in the sun for so long. He couldn't help it, all his emotions were starting to build on him. Those dreams always brought back the memories and he couldn't do a thing about them. They pounded in his head bringing back all the memories from the hidden leaf village, but most importantly his friends. Faces exploded from behind his eyes, all of whom he missed. But most of all, Sasuke. He couldn't ever forget him. No matter what. He still had his word on it. He couldn't leave and let Sakura and Sasuke down. They needed him.

In fact, the memory came back to Naruto. Sasuke turned his back on Naruto, left. No one could wash away those ties he had for him. No One.

Naruto walked over to Pervy Sage.

"COME ON PERVY SAGE, WE SHOULD BE THERE BY NOW" Naruto yelled at Jiraiya.

Jiraiya jumped up at the sudden outburst, his voice a forceful whisper, "Shut up you little gnat, can't you see I'm busy."

"Come On Pervy Sage. The suns going down. We can't exactly stay here. You've wasted enough time with your ridiculous peeping. If anything you should be training me. Its not like we have FOREVER." Naruto whined.

"Get off it kid, this is for grownups. Why don't you go away and practice your jutsu. Never could get enough practice. Besides kid, you complained all day about not getting home. Now go away." Jiraiya replied in the same whisper. "Besides, I'll teach you a new technique tomorrow if you leave me alone."

Naruto raised his nose smiling. "Fine, but if you keep us here for much longer, the sun will be going down and we have to be in the Village tomorrow."

"No, Naruto, you want to be in the village tomorrow, that doesn't mean we have to…"

Naruto cut him off angrily, "Oh shut up will you. We both know I'm dying to be home. It's not like we were there yesterday. I want to see it."

"Listen kid, as your sensei…"

Naruto cut him off again."Some Sensei, all you do is peek at girls. I haven't gotten any actual training in a month."

Jiraiya's eyes widened at his telescope. He wasn't even listening anymore. Naruto shook his head and went back to the tree he had slept against.

_Well nothing wrong with a little practice, I guess… _Naruto wondered.

Naruto reached down into his Kunai bag. He pulled out a couple of shurikan and started throwing them at the tree, to a dull thud. He threw them leisurely not actually trying to hit anything other than the tree. He sighed.

_All the practice in the world wouldn't help him if he couldn't get stronger with it._ He thought._ If only he knew what to do himself. Then he wouldn't need that old pervert. _

Naruto let his mind wander as the blades pounded against the trunk . In fact, he didn't even notice when objects started to form shape in the wood. The more he pounded the wood, the more the shapes took form.

He thoughts took him back to his old academy days, when he couldn't even hit a target with a kunai. He chuckled to himself. Now he didn't even have to think about it. They all simply struck home.

Naruto reached into his pouch for more, but found none. All his shurikan and kunai hung limply from the trunk of the tree. Naruto sighed to himself and noted that he needed to buy some more next time he was in a town. Besides, nothing could be better. His old ones were starting to look a bit worn anyway. He started pulling the knives out of the tree one at a time cleaning the blades on his pants. The sap building up on them. The more he pulled out the more his pants became his focus. He needed to get them cleaned anyway. They were starting to become perpetually covered in dirt and grime.

When he had pulled all the blades out and refilled his pack, he started walking back to Pervy Sage. But something caught his attention. Something that hadn't been there before. Naruto looked back at the trunk of the tree cleaned of bark. On the trunk was an image Naruto knew shouldn't have been there. Couldn't have been there.

It was an image of faces staring at him. Carved away from the tree the small faces watched him with eyes he knew too well. It was a picture of the rookie nine all staring at him. Naruto looked at the image utterly surprised it was there. It was small, but everyone seemed happy, their eyes glowing. Naruto smiled_. What a surprise… _

He couldn't take his eyes off them. It seemed as though they all knew something, something important. Naruto walked up to the carving grabbing his pack from the ground. He smiled again. _Wow, did I actually make that…_

Naruto pulled one of the kunai from the pouch trying to break the carving away. It was important now. He had to. But when the knife simply struck the wood. Nothing. He reached inside his pack and dumped it on the ground. He rummaged around in the pile searching for the knife. It lay in the bottom of the pile. Naruto pulled it out, putting it aside. As he did the bright gold engravings on the handle caught his eye once more. Ever since he had walked into a town the first day after leaving the village, he held it very close to him. Jiraiya had found it in some old shop, a lady had told him about. Naruto closed his eyes remembering that day.

He hadn't missed anyone yet. All he was anxious for was to get right to training. But instead Pervy Sage had pushed him to go into the store for him. For some reason, Jiraiya couldn't go in. So of course Naruto had to find the ridiculous red scroll, Jiraiya wanted. Naruto found it of course. But spent his time happy to make Pervy Sage wait. By chance he noticed the old store didn't simply have scrolls, but all kinds of things. The old lady behind the desk laughed when Naruto asked her so blatantly if she had any Kunai he could buy. When she managed to stop laughing, she told him she didn't. What she did have was a special knife. Not the simple kunai and shurikan, but a blade known as Fume-diblai. It was larger than kunai, but surprisingly light. Naruto picked it up fingered the handle. It had a deep golden engraving in the handle in the shape of a twisting animal. It had a small blade similar to a sword, the knife fit perfectly in Naruto's hand. He fingered it surprised it could look so different, but feel so familiar.

"What is this exactly" Naruto asked the old woman.

She smiled not surprised he didn't know.

"Listen kid, have you ever heard of the Great Ninja War?" She asked.

"Of course I have, what kind of a ninja would I be if I didn't" Naruto replied, surprised she had even asked such a ridiculous question.

"Well, I don't imagine you ever heard of the Diblai, then. Am I right?" Naruto nodded, ashamed. "Don't be so hard on yourself. He was a genius at building weapons. He could practically do anything. This knife was his last creation. But I'll tell you a secret. It was made for the third Hokage. Before Diblai died, he put everything he had into it and I doubt even Master Jiraiya, would know how it worked."

Naruto nearly jumped at the mention of the Pervy Sage.

He hastily replied, "How do you know…"

"Come on Jiraiya, stop leaving the kid in the dark. Get in here." The woman said with a chuckle.

Jiraiya entered the tent, a smile in his eyes. "You caught me, Tunde, how did you know it was me?"

Tunde replied, "Well you smell like a rotten toad, you idiot. You can't really be sneaking around in this town like that. I could have known it was you blindfolded and fifty meters away. Plus this kid smells just like you." She laughed.

Naruto looked back and forth between Tunde and Pervy Sage. "Wait a minute, you know Pervy Sage? I'm definitely missing something. What's going on here?"

She laughed." So that's what you're going by nowadays… Well I think it might fit you better than the toad mountain sage…"

"Shut up, Naruto. How many times have I told you not to call me that." Jiraiya scowled.

Naruto went back to looking at the knife and the animal on the handle. He had almost felt like he'd seen it before. It seemed too familiar.

Jiraiya's hand came down on Naruto's shoulder as he looked at the knife in his hand.

"So, getting rid of that now are you, Tunde?"

"Well, maybe if the right customer comes along." She replied looking at Naruto. "Tell you the truth, he's actually the only one to touch it for quite a while now. Honestly for some reason I just decided to put it out today. "

"Hey Tunde, you wouldn't happen to have another good sealing scroll I could buy. Last one filled up a bit too quickly."

"Sure Jiraiya, right over here" Tunde pointed to the other end of the store.

Jiraiya turned around "Naruto, be careful will you. I can't afford everything you could break."

Naruto scowled and turned back to the knife. When they came back he was still studying it. It was amazing how good it felt as if it were perfect.

Pervy sage took the knife away from Naruto and put it on the table where he got it.

Tunde spoke to Naruto, "Listen, Naruto right?, you were picked by the living blade. It never let anyone hold it like that since the third Hokage. It chose you. It obeys you. Look in your kunai pouch…"

Naruto skeptically pushed his hand in feeling all the familiar handles. He flinched in surprise when his hand slipped across the golden carved handle.

"B…Bu…But…How" Naruto stammered.

"It will always come back to you. No matter what…When you need it, it will always be in your kunai pouch." Pervy sage nodded when Tunde finished. "The third did very well with that blade. He got it when he was about your age and it saved his life many times over… Look. She smiled.

As Naruto looked back down to his hand he noticed a glow of blue chokra covering the blade. Almost as if the power came from the blade itself."

"Keep it close Naruto, it chose you for a reason." She said.

Naruto struck at the tree with the glowing blade breaking the piece off easily.

_This blade is amazing. _Naruto thought again.

He pushed the blade in his kunai pouch and wrapped the carving in his bag, replacing everything in it. He forced himself to get up and walk to Pervy Sage even as the sun sunk below the horizon.

_Great, _He thought, _another night outside when we could be home already. _

Next time: Homecoming


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto I wouldn't be writing this here. It would be on the show. That would be Awesome….

CHAPTER 2: Homecoming

A young woman sighed deeply. Ever since he'd left she hadn't been able to sleep decently. She was a wreck. She tried to brush the dirt off her heavy winter jacket, it wasn't cold out but she always wore it. Her eyes bulged trying to focus on her training, but her mind kept wandering off to that dream. Every night it was the same terrible nightmare:

It always started out like her memory of their adventure for the Bikochu beetle. After Naruto and Shino had risked their lives to save her only to find out she'd escaped on her own, then it changed Naruto called her aside flashing his always brilliant grin.

He spoke with pride and praise in his voice, but his mouth didn't ever move. It almost seemed like it came from all directions, flooding in on her.

"Hinata…. You did a really good job. Heck, probably better than I could have. You proved it, you proved that anyone can change. Now it's my turn to prove myself to everyone. Perhaps then I will be accepted as you have, Hinata. Now, I'm competing with you as well. Don't think I'll go easy on you. I have to change too…"

As soon as the words stop coming out of the air, Naruto opened his mouth screaming, in the worst voice she'd ever heard. Like he was on fire. His smile was gone lost to the howl of pain, but the scream wasn't his voice. It was as if a monster was screaming from within him. His flesh started to boil off his face as his eyes turned bright red. The skin, muscle, tissue fissured away before her eyes. The skin pulled away revealing a bright red light. It was blood red and seemed to be filled with evil, with hatred. His voice came back screaming to her to save him. But it changed just as suddenly back into the demons voice laughing maniacally about returning.

Then she always woke up, covered in sweat and shaking feverishly. She couldn't get it out of her head, that monster. That demon. She couldn't sleep after that dream.

Shino and Kiba had noticed the bags under her eyes and questioned her if she had gotten enough sleep and what was bothering her right away. But she couldn't ever tell them about the dream. She couldn't tell anyone about it, the thought of telling anyone terrified her even more than that voice. She shuddered visibly.

Ever since he'd left that dream had torn through her thoughts almost consciously. Everything had suffered because of her distraction. Everyone had just looked at her as if they knew she was worried about Naruto. But they shouldn't have known she always thought. She'd never told anyone about her feelings for him. Still it wasn't exactly like she hid it that well.

"Are_ my feelings really that obviou_s, though" she thought getting increasingly light headed.

She shook her head trying to bring her thoughts back to reality, but they just kept bouncing around in her head drawing her attention away from the task at hand.

Her head was reeling from her new jutsu, or her attempted new jutsu. She hadn't been able to do much of anything with it yet. And all it did was make her even more dizzy. She stopped spinning around bringing her arms back to her sides. Kiba and Shino watching hoping they wouldn't have to take her back to Sakura today to get healed. But even with their watch Hinata quivered and coughed blood in her hand. She wavered looking at her crimson hand. Her eyes dulled slowly and she tumbled over into a pile in the fresh dirt losing consciousness to the sound of Kiba and Shino running to catch her, a large Akamaru barking in the distance.

"Wait, why are you coming to me for this?" Tsunade asked behind the always huge pile of paperwork on her desk.

Shino replied emotionlessly, "It's quite likely she may have contracted a disease of some sort and considering no one's caught it yet at the hospital…"

Kiba cut him off, "It's more likely she's making herself sick over Naruto…."

Tsunade nodded thinking.

"_She already knew._" Kiba thought "Hokage, please, she's been like this since he left. She's always exhausted. She can never focus. She's been in the hospital three times already this week. Could you at least talk to her. I mean come on, please…"

"Fine, I'll go see her later today, but I can't promise anything." Replied Tsunade, her eyes glazed thinking about Hinata.

Akamaru's deep bark brought her back to the present.

"Is that all?" Tsunade questioned seeing Kiba's eyes still concerned. "If not I suggest you go and see Hinata. I'll be there myself in just a little bit. You may go." Tsunade said a bit too forcefully.

They nodded, their thought elsewhere.

"_Oh Hinata, why did you have to pick Naruto_…."She laughed, shaking her head and getting up from her piles of paperwork.

Hinata woke to someone shaking her yelling her name in her ear.

"Uuuuhhhhh, what? I don't understand." Hinata opened her eyes slowly. She was laying in a bright white room on a bed. Lady Tsunade glared at her from the foot of the bed.

Then it dawned on Hinata "Oh, I must have passed out, again. But lady Tsunade why are you here?"

Lady Tsunade walked over to the side of the bed as Hinata tried desperately to sit up. She put a hand on Hinata's shoulder.

"Lay down, you've been through enough" she said sternly.

Hinata tried to argue, but didn't have the strength. She shrunk back into the massive bed.

Tsunade still stared at her even as she started to relax and close her eyes.

Tsunade intervened "Hinata…. I think it's time you told me about that dream…"

Suddenly Hinata was as awake as ever before. Thoughts racing across her mind,

_How did she know, is it possible she somehow figured out? No I can't. _

Instead she lied, "What dream Lady Tsunade?"

Tsunade looked surprised, "Well I'm guessing it has something to do with Naruto considering you were talking in your sleep, something about a demon coming out of him. Not exactly the kind of thing you forget" She brought her face closer to Hinata's. "I think it's time…"

"Nooooooo", Hinata screamed surprising herself. "I can't tell you, I can't."

"Actually Hinata, I already know all about that, what I was going to say was I think it's time you know about the Kyuubi."

"You see Hinata, you already knew this, at least your subconscious did. That's all that dream was."

Everything inside Hinata was screaming at her, it couldn't be true. It absolutely could not. Not Naruto, it wasn't possible. No I can't believe it. No. No. No. No. No.

Hinata was shaking her head as the thoughts pounded away.

Then one little voice in her head whispered, "It kind of makes sense."

"No", she repeated to herself trying desperately to overcome that small doubt growing like a flame in her mind. But the more she tried the larger and louder the voice got.

"It explains why everyone hates him so much."

"No, I can't believe it. I can't, not Naruto" Hinata said aloud.

"Hinata" Tsunade called her back to the present. "I know, it's hard to understand and much less accept, but I know it's true and deep down so do you. The quicker you know that the quicker you'll understand him…." She sighed."Besides we all know you've been following since the academy. It's not really that big of a secret you know."

Hinata nodded slightly. The moment she had heard about the monster, she had known. _That's the reason for everything. The reason for his suffering. His pain. His lack of affection. That monster had taken everything away from him. Now it makes sense. His attitude, hiding the fact he knew everyone hated him. And his strength. That at least is his own. Actually, everything is him. He has nothing but himself. That monster though has made him strong, forced him to bear the burden. The hatred. That's why he never gives up. Giving up means he's not as strong as the monster within. _

"I understand."Hinata said out loud. She paused, "But that changes nothing, he has an inner demon just like us all and he's stronger than that monster. He's Naruto. He doesn't get his strength from the monster, but from controlling it." She blinked away the tears that had been building the whole time Tsunade spoke. Now they were filled with determination.

Tsunade shook her head trying to conceal her smile.

_Wow, this girl really does care for him, _Tsunade looked at the ceiling seeing Naruto's face from four years ago in it. _Don't go messing this up again, you knucklehead._ She looked back down at Hinata.

"Hinata, he can't always control that monster. Sometimes he becomes consumed by it, like he did when he faced Sasuke so many years again. He doesn't truly control it. If he gets angry enough the 9 tailed fox gives him it's chakra. That chakra seriously hurts him. You just can't see it because of the chakra itself and Naruto's will. He's strong but he's not in control. Not always."

Hinata straitened up on the bed listening to Tsunade. "Is there a way he can get the power to control the demon? "

Tsunade shrugged. "That's what he's been gone these four years for. But I don't know if they've actually made any progress. But…" Tsunade suddenly sensed the reasoning in Hinata's voice. "Actually, I think there might actually be a way to help him. It may just work… It's just crazy enough to work. Sounds like Naruto already." She looked back up. "But there's no way to tell if it will actually work or not, no promises whatsoever."

She walked to the door and slid it open. "Hinata, come to my office as soon as you can. If this is going to work we need to get started immediately" She spoke without turning around. "this might just work…"

Suddenly she stopped, hearing a rapid pounding of footsteps in the hallway, Shizune ran down the hallway as fast as she could. She looked left and right as she ran. By the time she spotted Tsunade standing in the doorway, she was more than out of breath.

"Shizune what the heck is going on? Why aren't you back in the office?"

Shizune gasped trying to pull much needed air into her burning lungs. She was breathing heavily for several minutes before she managed to speak a word. And when she did it seemed like she was about to fall over.

"Tsunade, …gasp…. Hurt….gasp….bringing in…gasp….Nar….Nar…Naruto."

"What? Their supposed to be back in a couple weeks, what the heck happened? Come on, lets go. COME ON NOW SHIZUNE, WE DON'T HAVE ALL DAY… GET MOVING ALREADY, COME ON!"

Hinata tried to get up to follow them down the hallway, but was forced back in the bed by a strong wave of pain across her chest.

" AAgggghhhhh" she gasped, unable to move an inch away from the bed.

"Naruto….Please be OK, please Naruto, I'll be there before you know it." She spoke to herself as her exhaustion began to take over and tears rolled down her face. "It's different now, I can feel it.."

She slowly faded from consciousness again, this time without that dream for the first time in years.

Next time: Injuries/ Unrecognized comrade

**Kinda feels a little rushed, what do you think? **

**Note: tried to make Hinata a bit more grown up. Does it seem right? Suggestions greatly appreciated. Please respond…..**

**Also what do you think of the page breaks. Are they good, bad or just plain ugly? Please tell…**


End file.
